"The Government of the United States of America has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. DE-AC02-92CE40960 awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy."
In operation of a gas turbine engine, air at atmospheric pressure is initially compressed by a compressor and delivered to a combustion stage. In the combustion stage, heat is added to the air leaving the compressor by adding fuel to the air and burning it. The gas flow resulting from combustion of fuel in the combustion stage then expands through a nozzle which directs the hot gas to a turbine, delivering up some of its energy to drive the turbine and produce mechanical power.
In order to increase efficiency, the nozzle has a preestablished aerodynamic contour. The axial turbine consists of one or more stages, each employing one row of stationary nozzle guide vanes and one row of moving blades mounted on a turbine disc. The aerodynamically designed nozzle guide vanes direct the gas against the turbine blades producing a driving torque and thereby transferring kinetic energy to the blades.
The gas typically entering through the nozzle is directed to the turbine at an entry temperature from 850 degrees to at least 1200 degrees Fahrenheit. Since the efficiency and work output of the turbine engine are related to the entry temperature of the incoming gases, there is a trend in gas turbine engine technology to increase the gas temperature. A consequence of this is that the materials, of which the nozzle vanes and blades are made, assume ever-increasing importance with a view to resisting the effects of elevated temperature.
Historically, nozzle guide vanes and blades have been made of metals such as high temperature steels and, more recently, nickel alloys; and it has been found necessary to provide internal cooling passages in order to prevent melting. It has been found that ceramic coatings can enhance the heat resistance of nozzle guide vanes and blades. In specialized applications, nozzle guide vanes and blades are being made entirely of ceramic, thus, imparting resistance to even higher gas entry temperatures.
Ceramic materials are superior to metal in high-temperature strength, but have properties of low fracture toughness, low linear thermal expansion coefficient and high elastic coefficient.
When a ceramic structure is used to replace a metallic part or is combined with a metallic one, it is necessary to avoid excessive thermal stresses generated by uneven temperature distribution or the difference between their linear thermal expansion coefficients. The ceramic's different chemical composition, physical prosperity and coefficient of thermal expansion to that of a metallic supporting structure result in undesirable stresses, a portion of which is thermal stress, which will be set up within the nozzle guide vanes and/or blades and between the nozzle guide vanes and/or blades and their supports when the engine is operating.
Furthermore, conventional nozzle and blade designs which are made from a metallic material are capable of absorbing or resisting these thermal stresses. The chemical composition of ceramic nozzles and blades do not have the characteristic to absorb or resist the thermal stresses. If the stress occurs in a tensile stress zone of the nozzle or blade, a catastrophic failure may occur.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.